Big office high rise would be built in Oakland’s hip Uptown district

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Telegraph Tower office project in downtown Oakland at the corner of Telegraph Avenue and West Grand Avenue, concept. A big office tower is being planned in downtown Oakland, a spire that would rise in the city’s bustling Uptown district
TMG Partners

Rooftop views at the Telegraph Tower office project in downtown Oakland,
corner of Telegraph Avenue and West Grand Avenue, concept. A big office
tower is being planned in downtown Oakland, a spire that would rise in the
city’s bustling Uptown district
TMG Partners

Telegraph Tower office project in downtown Oakland at the corner of
Telegraph Avenue and West Grand Avenue, concept. A big office tower is
being planned in downtown Oakland, a spire that would rise in the city’s
bustling Uptown district
TMG Partners

Interconnected floors in the Telegraph Tower office project in downtown
Oakland at the corner of Telegraph Avenue and 22nd Street, concept. A big
office tower is being planned in downtown Oakland, a spire that would rise
in the city’s bustling Uptown district
TMG Partners

OAKLAND — A big office tower is being planned in downtown Oakland, a spire that would rise in the city’s bustling Uptown district, developers said Thursday.

The 875,000-square-foot office building — large enough to accommodate potentially 3,500 to 4,400 workers — would be built near the corner of Telegraph Avenue and West Grand Avenue, according to project developer TMG Partners.

“Telegraph Tower leads the next generation of office buildings for Oakland with its emphasis on expansive, open floor plates, some of the highest ceilings of any Bay Area office building, and a large proportion of outdoor space,” said Michael Covarrubias, TMG Partners chief executive officer.

These are the sort of amenities that developers believe would cater to tech workers, whose employers hunger for attractive offices that they can use to recruit and retain skilled employees.

“We took every lesson we have learned about what companies want today and designed Telegraph Tower as a workplace environment that is entirely focused on delivering the ‘right’ employee experience,” Covarrubias said.

Among the major tech companies already committed to the Uptown area: Square, a financial services tech giant, previously revealed it had leased all of the office space in Uptown Station, a mixed-use office and retail complex built on the site of an old Sears department store.

The 28-story tower will include a community theater, street-level retail, a cafe, an art space, a big wellness center, outdoor terraces, fire pits, and rooftop amenities.

Construction of Telegraph Tower is expected to launch sometime in 2020. Commercial real estate firms JLL and Cushman & Wakefield are seeking tenants to lease the office high rise.

Seven retailers are now open for in-store shopping and services at Santana Row, while six restaurants are now open for outdoor dining, according to Federal Realty, the principal owner of the mixed-use commercial complex.